Sonic Movie Potentially in the Works?

New information has been released-a recent letter from Ken Penders to Sonic fan Pepperidge confirms that things may not be as fine as they seem:

I really hate to burst your bubble, but there are several factors you’re not taking into account here. To begin with, the characters aren’t mine, they’re Sega’s, and so they’re the ones who’ll dictate what version will see life on the big screen. Personally, I think the SegaSonic anime version should have always been the only version ever released, but Sega prefers to have an American version that’s distinctly different from the Japanese one, and don’t ask me to explain why, as I’ve never gotten a really good explanation for it, either. Second, whoever puts up the money for the project is going to have a say how they want the movie to be like. If the powers that be decide they want to finance a multi-million dollar project featuring a Sonic based on the SatAM and Archie comic series, then that’s what’s going to happen, whether you or I like it or not. You can protest it all you want, but I think your protests would amount to the same as all the X-Men fans who didn’t want to see what Fox has done to their beloved characters. They didn’t stop the X-Men movie, and neither would you stop the Sonic movie. Third, whatever I’m asked to do will be done according to how the producers want me to do things. I can either give what they ask for or not work at all. If I don’t do it, someone else will. At that point, it becomes a business decision. I’ve worked seven years on the comics series, so why should I give up the opportunity to someone else who never even worked on the characters? As mercenary as that sounds, money is not my sole motivation, but I do have to acknowledge a responsibility to support my family. In the end, the decision whether or not to make the movie is not mine and never has been, just as it’s not my decision how Sonic will be presented on the big screen. And as much as you and many others may not want anything but SegaSonic represented on the big screen, there’s just as many if not more who will go see the movie simply because Sonic — any version of Sonic — is in it. If there’s one thing movie studios know how to do, it’s turn protests such as the one you propose into their advantage. None of this may not be what you want to hear, but that’s life. I have to deal with unpleasantries myself as well. Take care.

We’ll continue to follow the situation closely.

6/2:  Major news out of a recent chat with Ken Penders–it looks like a new Sonic movie is in the works, with Penders in talks with Ben Hurst! Hurst is writing the first draft now, according to the chat. Here were some other things spilled from the chat:

-Dr. Droid, the villain from Sonic Super Special #7, will be in Knuckles: 20 Years Later. Lara-Su will play a key role in the edition as well.

– No Archie mini-series for now.

-Sonic Super Special #15 will be like #8, in that there will be several different stories.

-A manga edition of the comic might be pushed back to after SSS 17 due to schedule conflicts with “Spaz”. If it goes through, this will be a true manga.

-Penders is inking Sonic 90’s cover.

-Comic sales are down across the board, not just with Archie, but with other comics.

I will attempt to get a transcript of the chat as soon as I can, so please bear with me.